Starting With a Reef [Global Survival]

Twenty minutes passed.

All seventy-plus pieces of junk had been successfully recycled, and Yun Luohe had gained a large batch of resources.
But the most exciting part was that the Trash Can had finally leveled up again.
【Level 3 Trash Can】
【Experience required for next upgrade: 2000】
【Skills: Recycling and Reusing, Trash for Cash, Item Upgrade】
【Note: Only one skill can be used per day. If you want to change the skill, you must wait until the next day.】
【New Skill Unlocked: Turning Trash into Treasure】
【Accumulate fifty junk throws to receive a lottery chance. (Limited to twice per day)】

This time, even the appearance of the Trash Can had changed.
Previously, it was just a plain blue plastic cylinder. Now, it had become a gray-black rectangular bin with a lid.
It looked much more high-end.
Yun Luohe hugged the Trash Can.
"Bucket, you got new clothes too!"
She was eager to use the Item Upgrade skill, but due to the restrictions, she would have to wait until after midnight to change the skill.

Moreover, the lottery rules had also changed. Now, it required fifty junk throws to get one draw.
If she had known this earlier, she would have drawn in advance.
But after thinking about it, the rewards from the lottery might be better after the upgrade. Besides, she had already thrown in over seventy pieces of junk, so she wasn’t far from hitting one hundred.
Might as well draw once now.

[Lottery Successful]
[Obtained: "Basic Archery"]
"Basic Archery": A system-issued archery manual that allows you to learn the basics of archery. It increases archery skills and can also enhance stamina and strength points, improving hunting techniques.
Yun Luohe already had a foundation in shooting. Back when she was in the police academy, her scores were always among the top. Learning archery now shouldn't be difficult.

She picked up the manual, flipped through it, and immediately felt her mind fill with new knowledge.
Yun Luohe focused her thoughts and opened her personal stats screen.
[Name: Yun Luohe]
[Gender: Female]
[Age: 26]
[Zone: Test Server Zone 2]
[Health Points: 100]
[Stamina: 40]
[Strength: 77 (Upgradeable)]
[Agility: 71 (Upgradeable)]
[Luck: 15 (Upgradeable)]
[Traits: Insight +10]
[Skills: Cooking Level 1, Basic Archery]

If she remembered correctly, some of her stats had changed.
Strength, Agility, and even Luck had increased.
It seemed she needed to pay closer attention to her stats.
Otherwise, she wouldn’t even know what was causing the increases.

For instance, if she had checked her stats before and after learning the archery manual, she would have known if learning the manual had directly boosted her physical attributes.
As for the increase in Luck, Yun Luohe suspected it was related to the Trash Can. With the Trash Can leveling up and the items she was receiving improving, it made sense that her Luck would increase as well.
The batch of resources she obtained from recycling was enormous.
Yun Luohe spent some time sorting and categorizing everything, placing them in different storage boxes for easy access.

Basic Materials:
Ocean Stones × 103
Iron Ore × 66

Glass × 9
Fiber × 49
Plastic × 89

Wood × 38
Gravel × 29
Lime × 1

Sand × 1
Leather × 5
Deep Sea Flint × 10

Bamboo × 4
Charcoal × 28
Shells × 8

Linen Cloth × 3
Blueprints:
Dagger Blueprint × 1

Anti-Slip Hiking Boots Blueprint × 1
Damaged Blueprint × 2
Canvas Recipe × 1

Special Items:
Parchment Fragment × 1
Damaged Kerosene Lamp × 1

Island Entry Token × 1
Food:
Basket of Strawberries

Watermelon × 1
Coconut × 1
25L of Purified Water

Bottled Mineral Water × 5
Regular Fish Meat × 4
Mutant Fish Meat × 24

Flour × 1
Egg Fried Rice × 1
Miscellaneous:

Coconut Shell × 2
Cotton Cloth × 4
Yarn Ball × 2

Cotton × 1
Fishing Line × 1
Towel × 1

Floral Fabric × 1
Plastic Hose × 1
Dried Octopus × 1

Fish Intestines × 5
A portion of the materials belonged to Du Ruan-tian, who had provided them for the production of Water Purifiers.
Therefore, Yun Luohe’s personal resources were still relatively limited.
If she wanted to upgrade, she was still a long way off.

At her current collection and recycling pace, it would take at least a month to gather enough resources to upgrade.
But exploring the island was an absolute necessity.
Even the most barren island would have sand, wood, and other basic resources.
Yun Luohe’s immediate goal was to produce canvas as quickly as possible.

She opened the interface to check her unread messages.
Yang Mian had contacted her, wanting to trade for food and asking if she could craft two beds for him.
Yun Luohe was curious as to why Yang Mian needed two beds, but she refrained from asking. After all, they weren’t that close.
Besides, her two workbenches were both occupied with making Water Purifiers, so she had no spare capacity for custom orders.
So, she could only refuse.
Moreover, the materials offered for the custom work weren’t particularly attractive to her.

“That’s fine,” Yang Mian said.
Yun Luohe still had quite a bit of fish meat left, but she decided to keep it simple.
“I have some fish meat. I can trade it for linen cloth, refined steel, or blueprints,” Yun Luohe said.

She provided several options, ensuring that Yang Mian would have something to trade.
“What kind of fish meat?”
Yun Luohe thought for a moment. The cooked fish meat would definitely fetch more, but that would reveal that she had a cooking skill. In the Trading Center, she had been anonymously listing the grilled fish meat.
Additionally, cooking took time, and she had too much to do. It was more efficient to catch more fish and trade the raw meat.

So, she only sent Yang Mian the descriptions of the fresh fish meat.
Yang Mian was quite satisfied.
He had a stove and could roast the fish meat himself. He could also use coconut shells to cook the meat. By adding water and fish meat to the shell and placing it over the fire, he could make a pot of fish soup with a hint of coconut fragrance.

“How do you want to trade? I have some lime and linen cloth, but not much.”
Yun Luohe thought for a moment. “Three materials for one piece of fish meat.”
Yang Mian initiated the trade.

He sent over 4 linen cloth and 2 lime.
Perfect. With this, Yun Luohe now had six pieces of linen cloth.
If she could get a few more, she would have enough to make five pieces of canvas to craft a sail.

But just one sail wasn’t enough. If she wanted Wu Jing to make her a boat, she would have to provide at least two sails to negotiate better terms. Otherwise, why would he prioritize her? After all, everyone wanted to be the first to explore the island.
After the transaction, Yun Luohe sent Yang Mian another message.
“Let me know if you can gather more of the materials I mentioned. I can trade more fish meat.”

Yang Mian’s supplies seemed fairly abundant, except for food, which he clearly lacked.
Yun Luohe: “I also have watermelon and strawberries, in case you’re interested.”
When Yang Mian saw the strawberries and watermelon, his expression changed slightly.

Yang Mei loved fruit, especially strawberries.
As a doting brother, Yang Mian was always looking for ways to make his sister happy. Seeing her favorite fruit, he couldn’t let the opportunity pass.
He did have some refined steel, but he knew it was a vital material for making weapons, so he was hesitant to trade it.
After all, with mutant fish monsters becoming more aggressive, there was no guarantee that larger, more dangerous ones wouldn’t appear later. He needed weapons to protect Yang Mei.

Perhaps he could trade a blueprint instead?
Yang Mian had two blueprints. He had no workbench or sewing machine to craft them, and he hadn’t traded them away yet, intending to use them when he was more established.
Now, he had an idea.
He could partner with Yun Luohe, sell her the blueprint, and ask her to make one item for him in exchange. Then, he could trade the rest for some strawberries and other food.

Yang Mian chose one of the two blueprints, the one with lower value.
“[Quilt Blueprint]. I’ll trade this for the strawberries.”
[Quilt: A warm, cozy quilt. Who wouldn’t want one?]
[Materials Required: Cotton × 2, Cotton Cloth × 2. Requires Industrial Sewing Machine to craft.]

Another one that required the industrial sewing machine.
Even though she couldn’t make it right now, Yun Luohe still wanted to obtain this blueprint. There was a high demand for quilts among the players.
The temperature difference between day and night was significant, making the nights especially cold. Yun Luohe had received her quilt as a reward for upgrading, but most players didn’t have one.

Compared to plastic umbrellas, quilts were a more urgent necessity.
Yang Mian was likely willing to trade it because he couldn’t make it himself.
Yang Mian: “I’ll give you the blueprint, but when you can make quilts, you have to make me two. If you agree, we can trade.”

Yun Luohe: “Alright, no ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) problem. But aren’t you worried I might go back on my word?”
Yang Mian replied indifferently, “That’s why you have to give me a bit more in this trade. When you eventually make the quilts, I’ll trade equal value materials with you for them.”
“Fine. Half a basket of strawberries. What else do you want?”

“Two bottles of water and one piece of fish meat.”
Yun Luohe immediately refused. Including the fish meat was too much.
“No, I can’t give you the fish meat.”
“How about I add some plastic?”

“No need. Just the items I mentioned.”
Right now, Yun Luohe didn’t lack plastic. Every day, she recycled tons of it, and Du Ruan-tian also provided plenty for making Water Purifiers.
“Alright then, how about I add two more pieces of lime?”
That was acceptable.

Yun Luohe agreed, and the trade was completed.
She opened the Trading Center, intending to check if her two pieces of fish meat had been sold.
Not only had they sold, but she also received several messages.
One player asked if she had more of the same fish meat and wanted to buy more.

Yun Luohe checked the player’s name.
It was someone she recognized.
Wu Jing.
Yun Luohe was anonymous, but Wu Jing’s purchase was under his real name.
However, the person who had purchased the two pieces of grilled fish meat earlier wasn’t Wu Jing.

Yun Luohe replied: “If you can provide the materials I want, we can trade.”
She waited a while, but Wu Jing didn’t respond. He was probably not looking at the interface right now, so Yun Luohe switched to the chat channel.
By now, it was already dark.

 
“Water Purifiers in the Trading Center are impossible to buy. Why are they always in auction mode?”
“Yeah, why not just set a price? Auctions are impossible for those of us who can’t afford to bid high. There are only a few listed each time. Who the hell is selling them?”
“I heard it’s someone from the Lucky Club.”
“I’m really fed up. Are they the only ones in the whole region who have the Water Purifier blueprint?”
“They’re also monopolizing the stove business. All the resources in the district are being funneled to them. How are we supposed to survive?”
“They’re just lucky and keep pulling good items and blueprints.”
“Join the Survival Mutual Aid Association. Our members have terrible luck, but we can exchange junk for purified water. It’s not much, but at least you won’t die of thirst.”
“Oh, that’s just the Unlucky Club, right? They’re copying the Lucky Club’s entry requirements, only allowing players with bad luck to join.”
The discussions were all somewhat related to Yun Luohe.

She actually agreed with the auction strategy for selling Water Purifiers. She could only produce a limited number each day, so auctions were the best way to maximize her gains.
As for the stove monopoly, she wasn’t surprised.
Du Ruan-tian was the first to make stoves, and she had partnered with the Lucky Club to sell them. They must have earned a fortune. Even now, the stove business was still booming.
Even if other players had obtained stove blueprints, mass production required a lot of materials.
Unlike Du Ruan-tian, who had the backing of the Lucky Club, dozens of high-Luck players pooled their resources together. That wasn’t a small amount.

Yun Luohe even suspected that the materials Du Ruan-tian had given her weren’t entirely hers.
But Yun Luohe didn’t bother to delve into the details of how Du Ruan-tian operated.
 

Yun Luohe pulled up the fishing net that had been soaking in the seawater for hours.
Inside was a shell.
Today, she was in luck. On her first haul, she got a white pearl.

[Obtained: Iron Ore × 2, Fiber × 5, Wood × 10, Broken Ceramic Bowl × 1, Brick × 1, Torn Burlap Sack × 1, Shampoo × 1, Potato Pancakes × 2, Torn Plush Slippers × 1]
There were still six hours until midnight.
Yun Luohe planned to recycle some of the items now, leaving a few to use for the Item Upgrade skill after midnight.

[Broken Ceramic Bowl successfully recycled, obtained Clay × 1]
[Torn Plush Slippers successfully recycled, obtained Cotton × 2]
She kept the burlap sack. Based on her previous experience, burlap sacks would turn into fibers when recycled.
But now, she wanted to test if the upgraded Trash Can could turn them into linen cloth instead.
After all, the burlap sack and linen cloth looked quite similar in texture.

Getting clay from the ceramic bowl was within her expectations, as clay was a fundamental material for making ceramic items.
It was getting late, so Yun Luohe grilled some fish meat.
This time, she grilled only mutant fish meat to replenish her stamina.

Each piece restored 10 stamina points. She planned to eat two, which would at least allow her to use the fishing net once more.
For the next few hours, she alternated between checking the workbench to replace materials and sitting on the stairs to fish, keeping an eye on the fishing net.
Before long, it started to rain.

Fishing consumed very little stamina.
Yun Luohe now had plenty of bait. The octopus she had dried earlier had been cut into small chunks, enough for twenty rounds of fishing.
She had also set aside some fish intestines specifically to use as bait.
Using these, the catch rate was quite high.

After an hour of fishing, she caught three fish.
One small squid and two groupers.
The fishing net also pulled up a piece of tattered clothing.
The rain intensified. Yun Luohe opened her umbrella and reeled in her fishing rod.
It was time to deal with the three fish she had just caught.
The smell of cleaning fish would likely attract some fish monsters.

Yun Luohe’s sickle had lost a lot of durability after fighting fish monsters. One more use, and it would likely break.
But making a new sickle only required one piece of iron ore, which was a small price to pay considering the fish meat she gained from killing fish monsters.
If only she could get her hands on a better weapon.

Processing the fish herself had one downside—the size of each piece of fish meat was inconsistent, unlike the uniform pieces obtained through the system’s auto-process.
But the differences weren’t significant, and it didn’t affect the taste.
Additionally, she got more fish heads, tails, and intestines when processing them herself.
So whenever she had the time, Yun Luohe preferred to handle the fish herself.

She had just finished cleaning two fish when a fish monster caught the scent and appeared.
It was another mutant pufferfish.
Pufferfish were harder to kill than other fish monsters. Their skin was tough and covered in spikes, and they were also poisonous.

Many players had been injured by mutant pufferfish.
Getting hit by a pufferfish’s poison meant lying in bed for an entire night, unable to move.
If Yun Luohe had to spend a whole night in bed, she’d lose her mind.

How many things would she miss out on in those hours?
Therefore, she was extra cautious when dealing with pufferfish.
She wouldn’t give them any chance to strike.

After consecutively killing three mutant fish monsters, Yun Luohe’s haul was substantial.
The surrounding fish monsters seemed to have realized that the person on this reef was not to be trifled with, so they scattered. Even though the edge of the reef was drenched in blood, no more fish monsters dared to approach.
Yun Luohe waited on the reef for a while, feeling somewhat puzzled.

Why did they stop coming?
She opened the interface.
Wu Jing had messaged her again.

Wu Jing: “I know. I have the materials you want. How many pieces of cooked fish meat do you have? I want the gold-grade ones that restore 10 stamina points.”
Yun Luohe: “If you want a lot, the price will go up. If you only want one piece, it’s the same price as yesterday. But if you want more, you’ll need to trade blueprints, Space Stones, or refined steel.”
Wu Jing: “I want five pieces of gold-grade cooked fish meat. Name your price.”

That was bold.
Yun Luohe was secretly astonished.
Wu Jing was being quite extravagant. Asking for five pieces right off the bat.

If he wanted that many, it was likely to replenish stamina points.
Could it be that he was preparing to go to the island?
After all, performing physical tasks consumed stamina rapidly. If one didn’t bring along something to restore stamina, they’d be exhausted within a few hours and would just end up staring at resources without the strength to collect them.
She also needed to prepare ahead of time.

But... had Wu Jing already built a sailboat?
If he was already prepared, could she use her materials to negotiate for a boat?
Thinking this through, Yun Luohe said directly, “I want the sailboat blueprint.”

Wu Jing was silent for a long time.
“How did you know I had the sailboat blueprint?”
Yun Luohe: “I didn’t know you had it. But that’s what I want.”
If he hadn’t used it yet, it could still be traded.

Once a player learned a blueprint, it would disappear. Regular blueprints could be crafted repeatedly, but some advanced blueprints, like the workbench or the forge, could only be crafted once.
Wu Jing: “I do have the blueprint, but I already used it. Pick something else.”
Yun Luohe hadn’t really been targeting the blueprint; she was just probing.

“Since you’ve already made it, then let’s trade for the sailboat itself.”
Yun Luohe didn’t wait for his response. Instead, she took out her frying pan and started cooking the fish meat.
Aside from the five pieces for Wu Jing, she needed to prepare at least ten pieces of pan-seared fish meat for herself.

If she ended up getting the sailboat today, she might set sail immediately.
It would be best to bring the frying pan and the stove with her, so she could cook to restore stamina even while on the island.
However, she was concerned about not being able to finish all ten pieces.
But ten should be enough.
If she managed to get the sailboat today, it would be best to set off tonight.

Yun Luohe’s mind was already calculating.
If she left the reef, she needed to notify Du Ruan-tian, as she wouldn’t be able to continue producing Water Purifiers while away.
 

Wu Jing: “I don’t have enough materials to make another sailboat. I used alternative materials to complete mine.”
Yun Luohe: “What did you use?”
Wu Jing: “You’re asking too many questions. I can’t make another sailboat. Choose another deal.”

Yun Luohe: “If I provide the materials, can you make it?”
Wu Jing’s expression changed. He was now very curious about who he was dealing with.
Earlier that morning, he had seen a player in the association pull out two pieces of pan-seared fish meat.
At that moment, he had been extremely agitated because he had been racking his brain over the issue of stamina points.

To go to the island, he needed to find a way to restore stamina points.
He couldn’t just work for a bit and then sleep to recover stamina.
The Island Entry Token was only valid for one day, so every hour mattered. Last time, he had been the first to upgrade, so he received both the sailboat blueprint and the Island Entry Token. This time, he had to maintain his advantage.
If he could stay ahead, he would widen the gap between himself and the other players in Zone 2.
At that point, no one would be able to surpass him.

But this mysterious player not only had food that restored stamina points but also knew about his sailboat blueprint. Was she also a member of the association?
Wu Jing refused to believe that her mention of the sailboat blueprint was a mere coincidence.
If she could provide the materials to make a sailboat, Wu Jing wouldn’t want to help her.
He had to be the first to set sail. Even if he made a sailboat for someone else, it would only be after he had gone to the island himself.

 
Yun Luohe could tell from Wu Jing’s prolonged silence what he was thinking.
It all depended on how badly he wanted those fish meat pieces.

Before reaching a deal with him, Yun Luohe wouldn’t list any more fish meat in the Trading Center.
While she continued cooking, she kept browsing the Trading Center for the materials she needed.
Before long, she had some gains.

There were still some players listing linen cloth, clay, lime, and sand.
The requested trades were mostly for upgrade materials and food.
Yun Luohe had both.

After some quick transactions:
10 Iron Ore and 2L of Purified Water were exchanged for:
Linen Cloth × 3

Clay × 5
Sand × 2
Lime × 4

The Trading Center had only been open for a short time, and prices were still quite unstable. Everyone was setting their own rates, and buyers either accepted the deal or didn’t.
Yun Luohe was just stockpiling materials. She needed plenty for both upgrades and building the toilet.
Time quickly passed, and it was now 11:30 PM.
Wu Jing still hadn’t replied, and Yun Luohe didn’t rush him.

She was actually feeling quite anxious, but this was not the time to push.
Whoever spoke first would be the one to back down.
It was almost midnight, and soon, she could switch the Trash Can’s skill.
She was also only ten junk items away from the 100-junk milestone, which would earn her a lottery chance.

Might as well toss in some stuff to make up the count. Lottery chances were too valuable to waste.
Yun Luohe decided to throw in all the shells she had collected.
Eight shells, the same as before, were recycled for 40 Ocean Stones.
Still two junk items short.

She looked over her resources and decided to toss in two pieces of gravel.
Gravel was useful, but the lottery was more urgent.
[Lottery Chance Refreshed: 1]
[Lottery Successful]
[Obtained: Forge Blueprint × 1]

[Forge: Used to smelt various metals. Essential for weapon crafting.]
[Required Materials: Iron Ore × 10, Deep Sea Flint × 10, Shells × 5]
Amazing!
A forge!
The Trash Can never disappoints!